Kashi Is Ready To Defend Parents

``I am not always going to be around to take care of you,`` he insisted.

After seven months of nagging, Linda Kashi and her husband, Joe, gave in and began taking instruction in tae kwon-do, a martial art featuring a variety of kicks and punches delivered in a graceful, ballet style.

Benny has been taking instruction for 18 months at Grand Master Ji Young Song`s Tae Kwon-do Center in Sunrise. He and Kevin Chow, 16, of Fort Lauderdale, another of Song`s students, won national championships for their age and weight classes.

Linda Kashi admits she had misperceptions at first about tae kwon-do.

``To me the martial arts meant people coming out of dark corners and flying at other people, and they all looked like gangsters. I was afraid Benny would get hurt or become too aggressive.``

Benny was attending the Jacaranda School in Plantation when Song began teaching tae kwon-do there twice a week. Before then Benny had a history of getting into scrapes with other children and receiving more than his share of bruises.

``Now the other kids don`t pick on me anymore,`` he says.

Kevin Chow, 16, is small for his age. He is 5 feet 3 and 102 pounds. Most of his friends are husky 6-footers. ``He could have developed confidence problems,`` said his mother, Marilyn.

Confidence problems? ``My goal is to make the U.S. Olympic Team in 1992,`` he said without hesitation. ``If I keep on the way I am now, I think I have a pretty good chance. I know that I have to be the best I can be to make it.``

Suppose he doesn`t make it in 1992, would he try again in 1996?

``Absolutely,`` he said.

Kevin Chow`s father, Raymond, was raised in China and received instruction in martial arts. He helped stimulate his son`s interest.

``I wanted to get into martial arts,`` Kevin said. ``I looked in the Yellow Pages and found the closest tae kwon-do center. I knew tae kwon-do was very popular.``